Landon Cassill not returning to Front Row Motorsports in 2018

Landon Cassill will not return to Front Row Motorsports for the 2018 season. The news was released Tuesday, though Cassill stated he had been informed of the news a day prior.

“I’m kind of excited to see what doors open up for me,” Cassill told JeffGluck.com, who first reported the news. “I have a unique résumé in this sport right now. I think my youth is what kind of helps stay plugged in on a social side and off-track side, and then I just have a tremendous amount of experience in the Cup Series — maybe not having the limelight of a top-notch team, but I’d like to work myself into one of those scenarios where I can showcase what I’ve learned.”

Cassill currently drives the #34, though he had driven the team’s #38 in 2016. After 30 races, the Cedar Rapids, Iowa native sits 32nd in points. A former Hendrick Motorsports development driver, he bounced between teams in his early Cup career before settling at BK Racing’s #83 team for the full 2012 season. He later raced for Joe Falk’s Circle Sport operation, which was consolidated with Mike Hillman’s Hillman Racing team in 2014. Now driving the #40, he ran much of the season in conjunction with a full-time campaign in the Nationwide Series with JD Motorsports. At the fall Talladega race, he recorded his first career top-five finish in the Cup Series with a 4th-place run. He remained with Hillman and JD for 2015.

In 2016, he joined FRM’s #38 car. At the spring Bristol, he caught the eyes of many in the NASCAR community as he led 20 laps following a pit strategy. A fan favorite on social media, he devised a slogan for his team: “38, nice”. Cassill finished 29th in points.

For the 2017 season, he moved to the #34 car as former FRM driver David Ragan took over the #38. He has three top-20 finishes: 16th and 19th at the two Daytona races, followed by 20th at Chicagoland in September. Continuing his social media antics, he has established himself as a spokesman of sorts for team sponsor Love’s Travel Stops, frequently retweeting images of fans at such stops.

“We’re thankful for the last two years having Landon as a teammate and an ambassador for our sponsors, and we’ll keep working hard with him and the #34 team for the best possible results the remainder of the 2017 season,” a team spokesperson said.